Donald Trump is a controversial person. Some love him, others hate him, that does not change the fact he could be the next president. In June of 2016, Trump met with renowned religious advocates to discuss his personal religion and a selection of other topics. Throughout his candid discussion, multiple rhetorical appeals were used. The analysis of the conversations context, rhetorical appeals, and specific language will define the effectiveness of this meeting. Five different elements are considered when outlining the context of the conversation: author, purpose, audience, genre, and historical context. Donald Trump was the author, displaying his opinions. He was in this conversation for the purpose of scoring votes with his target audience, white Christians of voting age. The genre, the expectations of the audience, were most likely that Trump would portray a phony façade. Finally, the historical
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He knew what he had to say and do to get white conservative Christians to accept him. If someone had only heard this segment, and knew nothing about Donald Trump previously, the tailored rhetorical devices would be effective. The use of Ethos to create similarities with the audience, the use of Logos to convince skeptics, and the use of Pathos to construct emotional stories and situations was exactly recipe to convince white evangelicals. Matthew 6:1 (NIV) “Be careful not practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no rewards from your Father in heaven.” Faith should not be used as a political advantage. 1 John 1:6 “If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.” If Donald Trump is Christian, then he would not have done some things he has done, and his life would reflect a Christian world view, rather than a secular
He knew what he had to say and do to get white conservative Christians to accept him. If someone had only heard this segment, and knew nothing about Donald Trump previously, the tailored rhetorical devices would be effective. The use of Ethos to create similarities with the audience, the use of Logos to convince skeptics, and the use of Pathos to construct emotional stories and situations was exactly recipe to convince white evangelicals. Matthew 6:1 (NIV) “Be careful not practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no rewards from your Father in heaven.” Faith should not be used as a political advantage. 1 John 1:6 “If we claim to have fellowship with Him and yet walk in darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth.” If Donald Trump is Christian, then he would not have done some things he has done, and his life would reflect a Christian world view, rather than a secular